China's marine economy posts steady growth in 2025, topping 11 trillion yuan

China

China's marine economy posts steady growth in 2025, topping 11 trillion yuan

2026-03-14 22:21 Last Updated At：03-16 13:20

China's Gross Marine Product (GMP) exceeded 11 trillion yuan (about 1.6 trillion US dollars) in 2025, up 5.5 percent year on year, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources.

Data from the ministry show that in 2025, China's marine GDP was close to 11.02 trillion yuan, accounting for 7.9 percent of national GDP, 0.1 percentage points higher than the previous year.

Traditional marine industries developed steadily and rapidly, the data showed. The supply capacity of marine aquatic products continued to strengthen. The production of marine crude oil and natural gas increased by 3.4 percent and 17.0 percent year on year, respectively. Newly received orders, completed orders and order backlogs for seagoing vessels all maintained an international market share of above 50 percent, ranking first in the world for 16 consecutive years. The integration of marine culture and tourism was particularly notable, with the number of cruise passengers increasing by 25.3 percent year on year.

Emerging marine industries continued to improve in quality and efficiency, according to the release. The added value of the marine engineering equipment manufacturing industry increased by 10.2 percent year on year; innovative achievements in marine biomedicine and biological products continued to emerge rapidly. The offshore wind power market continued to expand, with the newly added grid-connected capacity increasing by more than 60 percent year on year, and the direct utilization of seawater continued to grow steadily.

The capacity to ensure the supply of marine resources has been steadily strengthened, said the ministry. A total of 372,000 hectares of new sea and island use areas were approved during the year, involving investments exceeding 921.8 billion yuan, effectively guaranteeing the sea and island use requirements of projects in the fisheries, oil and gas, and wind power sectors.

"The 15th Five-Year Plan outlines a systematic plan for marine development, utilization and protection. The Ministry of Natural Resources will place greater emphasis on innovation-driven development, efficient collaboration, industrial upgrading, harmony between humanity and the sea, and win-win cooperation, striving to promote high-quality development of the marine economy," said Meng Qinglei, deputy director of the Marine Strategic Planning and Economics Department under the Ministry of Natural Resources.

Central government spokesperson refutes Lai Ching-te's latest remarks, warns against secessionist moves

A Chinese mainland spokesperson on Wednesday slammed Taiwan leader Lai Ching-te over his latest remarks on cross-Strait relations, accusing him of promoting secessionism and escalating tensions across the Taiwan Strait.

Chen Binhua, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said in a press release that Lai's speech marking his second anniversary in office was "filled with lies and deception, hostility and confrontation."

Chen accused Lai of stubbornly adhering to a secessionist stance in pursuit of "Taiwan independence," while exaggerating the so-called threats from the mainland and intensifying confrontation across the Strait.

Lai played an old trick of advocating the secessionist agenda on one hand and, on the other, calling insincerely for dialogue and exchanges with the mainland, attempting to mislead people in Taiwan and deceive the international community, he said.

Chen said that these common tricks have been seen through by more and more Taiwanese people. Their deceptive and provocative actions will be met with firm opposition from compatriots on both sides and the international community, and are doomed to fail.

Reaffirming the mainland's position on the Taiwan question, Chen said Taiwan has never been a country, is not one now, and will never become one in the future.

He described the Taiwan question as a historical issue left over from a Chinese civil war in the 1940s.

No election result in Taiwan could alter the fact that Taiwan is part of China or sever the historical and legal bonds linking the two sides of the Strait, according to Chen.

The mainland would never allow any person or force to pursue secessionist activities under any pretext, he added.

Calling secessionists "the chief culprit" who undermines cross-Strait peace, Chen said the mainland would continue to uphold the one-China principle and the 1992 Consensus, unite broadly with Taiwan compatriots, combat secessionist activities, and safeguard peace and stability across the Strait.